Harvesting History

The Mustard – A Little History and Some Growing Instructions

Mustard is yet another member of the brassica family, a huge family of vegetables, all of which developed from the wild cabbage and include cauliflower, cabbage, broccoli, kale, collards, turnips and Brussels sprouts. Mustard probably originated somewhere in eastern Asia and has been cultivated for nearly 3000 years in central Asia, the Himalayas, India, Russia and China.
Mustard leaves when harvested young range in taste from mild to peppery to hot and pungent and are an excellent salad green.   Mature mustard leaves need to be cooked, either steamed or stir-fried.
Unlike, most of its brassica cousins which are cool season crops, mustard can tolerate warm and humid growing conditions. Mustard should be direct seeded in early to mid-spring for a summer crop and mid- to late summer for a fall crop. Seed should be sown thinly and planted ½ inch deep, in rows 18 inches apart. Seedlings should be thinned to 6-8 inches apart. The thinnings can be used as baby greens in salads.
Mustard greens for salads can be harvested when the leaves are 4-6 inches long. The side leaves should be harvested first, making sure not to disturb the crown. The larger leaves, harvested later, are usually hotter and more pungent. These leaves should be stir fried or steamed.